Hey, Folks! Now that I've had my very first Alembic (MK Sig Dlx 5-string) for 8 months, I realize I've just barely scratched the surface as far as filter and Q switch possibilities.

But I also realize I need to upgrade my rig to harness all that tonal richness and depth. I'm currently running thru an F1-X feeding a Crest LT-1500 and two stacked Aguilar GS 112's with tweets. I'm going full-range through both cabs, with the tweeter at about 75% volume on the bottom cab and only 25% on the top. I never liked tweeters in bass cabinets; I think they're harsh. I don't slap/pop and I use the fingernails on my right (picking) hand so there's not a whole lot of finger meat to excite the strings. For what it's worth, my three fave bass players (out of a whole bunch) are Jonas Hellborg, Jeff Berlin and Anthony Jackson.

So here's why I'm bugging you guys: I wish to keep my F1-X (for obvious reasons) but power-wise I want something more reliable than my current Crest (the power switch -- of all things -- is on the fritz) that's 400-500 watts/channel into 8 ohms and doesn't weigh a ton and maybe costs around $600. Why 8 ohms? Because most amp spec sheets list their damping factor at 8 ohms, so I assume that's the optimum impedance for their best ratings. I'm also not too keen on bridging mono; an accidental transient spike with 2000+ watts behind it can wreak havoc. I once blew up a JBL D-140 by being careless in that regard!

Mainly, I'm curious about your speaker choices. I want to get a portable 15" cab (or 2) that ideally weighs less than 65 lbs. I'm leaning towards an Aguilar GS 115 but there's a lot of other stuff out there. Any suggestions on the best 15" cabinets? Thanks! -Sam

Sam. In my opinion you can't go wrong with QSC power amps for a reasonable power to weight ratio. I have a PLX2402 that will put around 450 watts / channel into an 8 ohm load but can go as low as 2 ohms (1200 watts) and will also bridge into 4 ohms to give 2400 watts. I've not used many cabinets but for the past 3 years or so I've been using EBS Neo cabs and can highly recommend their 2x12 as an alternative to a 1x15. It's a 4 ohm cabinet and will cope with up to 600 watts very well. The thing weighs only 53 Lbs and I use either a pair of 212s or a 212 and 410 depending on the music. The 212 gives a beautiful 'phat' bottom end and is more than capable of holding it's own in a blues /rock gig. I add the 410 if I need a bit more top end or aggression. I keep the tweeters turned right down to no more than 1/10th as I feel they make the music a bit harsh.

Thanks for the tips, Graeme. I remember back in the day when bass cabs didn't have tweeters at all, and I still heard great tone all the time. In a much earlier thread I mentioned that I used to play full-range through 4 single 15" Alembic cabs (plus a 2 x 10" or 2 x 12" cab) on loan from the Dead and the bass was literally a wall of sound!

I know some companies now offer tweeter-less cabs as an option. I'd love to A/B the tweet vs. non-tweet versions for comparison purposes. I also forgot to mention that I need speakon connectors on the cabs. Do your EBS bottoms have those?

Sam, here's another vote for the QSC power amps. The last generation of PLX amps like the 2402 are great and can be quite reasonable. I replaced mine only because I got a great deal on a 3402 but I really appreciate that it has noticeably more headroom. The amp is rated 700w @ 8, 1100w @ 4 per side. I'm pushing 3 Eden D112XLT's (8 ohm 250wRMS) with it, sometimes adding a Bergantino 12 for my guitar player when we are on really wide stages. The Edens all have tweeters but I only use the one on top. It does sound really nice and smooth, but then again there's not a whole lot of aggressive high end I'm sending it. It may sound like that is too much amp for the cabs which are rated at 250 watts, but really it isn't. Clipping the amp is what fries speakers, not higher power, at least in my experience. You do have to be careful not to give them more than they can handle with regard to volume and eq, of course. One of the cool features of the QSC PLX amps is that they have a low-cut switch that kills ferequencies below either 50 or 30 Hz, depending on where you set it. This frees up a lot of power for audible frequencies and saves undue wear on your speakers. They also have a clip limiter switch but still... if I see red I'm backing off! lol

The little Edens are great...can't say enough good things about them. Light, compact, and sound good.

Tweeters...I've got 2 of the Bergantino 112's, one with the tweeter and one without. The one without definitely sounds better to me, even with the tweeter off, so that may not be the difference. I don't know.

Just for reference I'm using an F2B now but used an F1X for years and still have it set up with my 2402 as a backup rig.

Sam... Yes the EBS cabs have speakon sockets. In fact, I think you'd be hard pushed to find a leading manufacturer nowadays that doesn't specify a combination of both speakon and jack.

You mentioned wanting to a/b tweetered and tweeterless cabs and also that you were a fan of Jeff Berlin (who isn't?). Were you aware that he'd worked with MarK bass to produce a tweeter less combo? I'm not sure if they've also worked on any cabs without but it may be worth a look.